Memorial Day kicks off the start of the summer season and you know what summer means- barbequing! What can be worse than discovering that you just goofed up big time and all your guests are waiting to dig in? The following are the most common slip-ups that tend to happen at the most inconvenient times. Take heed to assure that your party is a smashing success!

• If you have a gas grill, running out of propane is your worst nightmare. Picture this: all your family and friends are gathered around waiting, your food is sitting on the grill, but your grill won’t light. Check to make sure that your gas tank is full or if you’re using a charcoal grill, that you have enough coal and matches to keep the grill going.
• For some reason or another, many people still use their kitchen utensils when grilling. If you’ve been using it until now and it has been working, then you’re one lucky guy. However, luck might not always be on your side, and if luck is not with you when family and friends are gathered around, then the last place I would want to be is in your shoes. Do make sure you have the proper grilling tools for you Memorial Day barbeque.
• When sugar is heated up, it melts and turns into a sticky mess. Since most sauces have sugar in them, it is important that you add the sauces over your meat only once your meat is just about done. Otherwise, the sugar in the sauce will melt causing it to stick to the grill and burn.
• Most inexperienced grillers tend to poke the meat with a fork to either check and see if the meat is done or in order to turn it over. The problem with that is that the holes made by the constant pricking allow the juices to drip out of the meat causing the meat to dry out and toughen up. In addition, the juices will drip down to the bottom of the grill, causing flare-ups and making it harder for you to clean up after. Using the proper barbequing tools will eliminate this problem.
• Just like a crockpot, the cover of the grill is designed to keep in moisture and allow a controlled amount of steam to escape.  Opening the lid of a grill while the food is cooking  will allow heat to escape, altering the temperature of the grill, which means longer cooking time. Furthermore, air gets into the meat causing the meat to dry up and increasing the chances of flare-ups. Therefore, try to contain your curiosity and open the lid as sparingly as possible, allowing the moisture created by the heat to absorb into your food.The results will be a moist and tender piece of meat.
• Once the party is over, chances are that you are so exhausted, that you are ready to just conk out. The worst thing you can do is to leave the grill as is until the  next time. Take those extra few minutes, use the proper cleaning tools and detergents and get that grill looking like new. The longer you let the grease sit on the grill, the harder it will be to remove.  An added benefit -  charcoal residue has been proven to be unhealthy - so it's much more prudent to get rid of as much residue as possible.

Most important of all, let us remember the reason for our barbeque get together. Let us remember all those who have given their lives so that we can live in freedom. Take a moment of silence to honor them all. We salute our fallen troops. Happy Memorial Day!

Filed under: General • How-To • Holiday • Food Quality

Tags: barbeque, memorial day